News & Events

Unichurch Mid Year Conference

Unichurch spent five days at Mid Year Conference (in Toukley) digging into the Bible and what it says about the Cross and how it's the most critical event in human history, the pivotal point of the Bible, and it's ALL about God's glory.

Pray for Unichurch as they've have heard an earth shattering message and above all thank God for the opportunity to run this camp every year as it grows beautiful, God glorifying fruit.

Live @ The Hub

On Saturday the Hub hosted the 2nd Live @ the Hub arvo. It was a great night with live music, fire-pits and fun. It was a great opportunity to invite friends along and help our friends become their friends.

Thank God for the wonderful talent we can enjoy at HBC and that relationship will keep developing through events like this.

Home with Purpose Series Starts

This Sunday saw the launch of our Home with Purpose series across all 4 congregations. We're hoping most people have got their hands on a Information Pack too.

Newy am Ladies' Christmas in July

On Saturday the 15th, Newy am ladies gathered for a Christmas in July dinner.

It was an opportunity for AM women to enjoy growing friendships, in a relaxed & cosy environment. They also enjoyed a delicious 2 course meal while connecting with our sisters in our church family. It was a lovely evening for the 38 women who attended to mingle and chat.

Give thanks for a lovely evening spent growing relationships. Pray that women from around HBC will continue to take time in their busy lives to connect and build friendships that are anchored in Christ.

Souper Sunday

This past Sunday, Unichurch welcomed the new semester and a whole bunch of new people with SOUPer Sunday. Everyone braved the cold before church and hung out having varieties of Soup together.

Please ask God to help Unichurch reach more students on campus with the message of Christ as Lord and Saviour.

new family members

As term 3 started last week, we also started a new Connect Series; a relaxed series of group studies that help newish people at HBC get a clearer idea about the type of church family we are and why we believe it's important.

Every time we run the Connect Series we see how it helps people feel like HBC really is their church and that they really belong here.

Please pray for the current group doing the series and for al the new people who've joined HBC in the past 6 months!

The LIFE SERIES

Please keep praying for your friends and join in praying for the LIFE Series kicking off this week.

As the Life Series Starts at the Hub on Thursday nights, there is also a Christianity Explored Course starting at Women's GG on Tuesdays and Thursdays (10am), and at Mark's Point Cafe on Wednesday nights.

Kids Team Training

On Sunday Many of our Kids Team Leaders gathered at Eleebana Public School to keep getting trained as teachers of God's word along side our parents.

Our Kids Leaders cover a huge range of programs (Newy am, Newy pm, LakeMac kids, Rush, School SRE, etc). Please pray for them and for many more to join them telling kids the awesome news of Jesus.

BUILDING Prayer Q & A

As we go through the Home with Purpose series and think about a church building, we've really loved hearing all the questions people have raised. Questions are great! They help the Elders, Staff and Building Team be careful and faithful.

You can always email questions to building@hunterbiblechurch.org. But we'd really appreicate your prayer. Come and join us on Aug 9th to pray for a building, our city and ask more questions.

Equip Women's Conference

HBC's women had a great opportunity to gather as a family and watch a live stream of the Equip Women's Conference at the Hub on the 27th.

This year they got into 1 Corinthians 11 and looked at what it means to be a woman in the sight of God

One of the best things about Equip17 LiveStream is that ladies from AM, PM, LakeMac and Unichurch get to spend time together, encourage one another and spend time in God's Word.

Pray that we would value Gods word and listen to it. Pray that we would continue to think through the roles of men and women in church and how we can glorify God.

Finance update

Please take a moment to pray about our church finances. After a good start this year, our giving has struggled to meet budget and cover all our expenses for the past few months.

Please prayerfully consider God's desire for every Christian to cheerfully and generously give to their church. If you haven't started giving regularly, or you think you should be giving more, please act soon to arrange a regular gift to the church bank account or set up a direct debit to church.

HBC Marriage Seminars

30 couples from different services attended the HBC Marriage Seminars. They looked at how to create deeper intimacy through meaningful communication and explored relationship roles in a Christian marriage. There was laughter, some tears and, at the end, many beaming couples.

Dave Allen even arranged for free babysitting so many were able to go on a child-free date that night!

Give thanks for the people who came to babysit children and thank God for the opportunity these couples had to come together and work at deepening their relationships. Pray for them as they seek to apply what they learnt in the coming months.

SMBC Kids Ministry Training

Earlier in May, many of our wonderful Kids Ministry Team woke up early to go to SMBC's Kids Ministry Training Day. The whole day was based on the book of Acts, best summarised as “The message of the risen Lord Jesus cannot be stopped!”

The day challenged our Kids Team to keep handling God’s Word carefully and make sure passages are distilled for children rather than watered down. Everyone came back with a heap of practical tips that they can put into practise.

Keep praying for all our leaders to keep being grown by God’s Word themselves, to be diligent in their preparations and for energy to keep engaging their kids with the wonderful message of the risen Lord Jesus, even when it is hard.

Little Buds Lunch

The Tuesday Little Buds Team were the guest of honour at a Tuesday Women’s Growth Group lunch on the 16th. Butter chicken, salad, roast chicken, chocolate raspberry muffins and much more was enjoyed by the Little Buds Leaders alongside the Women’s Growth Group ladies and the kids.

The ladies were keen to show their appreciation to the team for loving and serving the kids each week.

Please keep praying for Sam Koster, Laura Reed and their teams that they would teach the Bible clearly to the kids each week.

AIM Mission awareness meeting

Rob and Jenni Alley from Australian Indigenous Ministries visited us on from Taree. They ran an info session with a bunch of people who are interested in attending the Mission Awareness Tour they are running in September.

It was a great afternoon of getting to know Rob & Jenni better and hearing about their work raising awareness of the opportunities for cross-cultural mission in our own backyard! If you would like to know more email aim@hunterbiblechurch.org

Please pray that the trip in September will be a great time of growth for those who attend, and that they will come away from the trip keen to live for Jesus and passionate about the work God is doing in Aboriginal communities.

Prayer for our pastoral staff

Please keep our pastoral staff team in your prayers. Over the past few months, we've been getting help from other Christian groups, as well as being able to provide support to others also. We recently hosted a church management forum with pastors from England, Australia and America involved. Please join in praying for our leaders and for the growth of faithful churches around Australia and the world.

Register for Big Sunday

As we approach buying a building, August 27 is going to be an important day in the history of HBC. We're planning a Big Sunday; all 4 congregations together from 9.30am - 3.30pm. And it's the type of day that you move mountains to come to.

Big Sunday is FREE, but we need to know you're coming so we can organise catering. Please register now.

MTS Apprenticeships 2018

At HBC we're keen to raise up the next generation of gospel workers who will plant and lead churches and ministries across Australia and beyond. We partner with MTS to offer two year hands-on ministry apprenticeships. Contact MTS@hunterbiblechurch.org to find out more.

All-in Church at AM, PM & Lake Mac

The last two weekends of June, our AM, PM and LakeMac congregations did church with kids-in! Each meeting saw kids and adults singing, learning and doing actions as they looked through John 5.

Thank God for the chance to have all-ages in church and for our wonderful kids team leaders.

Lake Mac Weekend Away

On the 2nd-4th of June, LakeMac had a weekend away to Toukley. It was a an opportunity for the LakeMac congregation to get away for the weekend, to sit under God's word and invest time into one another as a family. Greg preached five great talks on Jesus as God's Right Hand Man (The Session of Christ) and they had some fantastic seminars on living for Jesus in marriage and singleness.

Pray for the HBC:LakeMac congregation that their lives - their godliness, their mission, and their decisions - would be about Jesus and His glory.

New Members Dinner

Joining a church is a big deal because God loves us and gathers us together as his people. The New Members Dinner was an opportunity to celebrate with people who have joined us this year. We had around 25 people come along and we got to chat about what God has done in the life of our church so far and what we are looking forward to God doing in and through us.

Give thanks for all the people who have come along and decided to join us this year. Pray for them to keep making deeper and deeper connections with people and to feel part of HBC.

Big Ideas Night: Men & Women in Ministry

In May and June we gathered for two events (men and women) to explore what the Bible says about men and women in ministry. At the women's Big Ideas night Jenny Jefferys and Rach Munday did some great teaching on 1Timothy 2 and a reflection on feminism. A long Q&A with Jenny, Jo, Rach and Greg was very helpful.

This topic creates controversy among Christians and in the world, but we were able to see the goodness of God's way: men and women are equally valuable in God's church but at times serve him in different ways in different roles.

Pray that as a church both men and women would be glorifying God in all kinds of ministry.

UniChurch marriage seminar

On the 10th, Unichurch couples attended a marriage seminar at The Hub. It was an awesome afternoon which allowed them to think about how their marriages help them do the ministry of building God’s kingdom.

They were encouraged to love both singles and married couples around Unichurch, remembering that their job is firstly to serve Jesus.

Pray that all our married couples would be seeking to glorify God in their marriages.

Winter Warmers

Winter Warmers has kicked off whilst Unichurch Growth Groups are on pause over the holidays. Unichurchers have been meeting at the Hub every Tuesday to share a meal together and spend some time studying God's word.

Winter Warmers is a great chance for our Unichurch congregation to stay focused on God's word while they are on break from uni and their regular routines. It is a great time of fellowship as a congregation.

Please be praying that people will be coming along and continue to grow in God's word over the mid year break.

New Mobile Phone App?

We've been considering a HBC Phone App and we'd love your feedback and ideas! Would you use it? What would you use it for? Should we do it? Let us know!

Easter with hunter bible church

Over Easter, 600 people gathered to celebrate Jesus's Death on Good Friday with Hunter Bible. There were heaps of new people and families with us across the weekend.

Give thanks for the chance to come together as a church and for all the people who came along. Pray that they all felt welcomed and were challenged by Jesus's death and resurrection.

Good Friday BAPTISMs

On Good Friday, six of our congregation members were baptised as an outward declaration of their love for Jesus to their family and friends.

Pray that those who were baptised would continue to grow in their love for God.

UniChurch Men & Meat

On the 6th, the guys from Unichurch brought their friends along to the Men & Meat night, to see how a lamb carcass is butchered into it’s various cuts of meat, BBQ it and eat together.

Liam Doyle, the butcher, also gave his testimony about being confronted by death and what this meant for his relationship with Christ. The night gave all those who came along an opportunity to think about why they might want to consider Jesus in a relaxed environment.

Give thanks for those who came and who brought friends. Pray that they might be challenged by what they heard and want to consider the claims of Jesus in more depth.

Youth at kyck

From the 7th - 9th, HBC Youth headed along to KYCK at Katoomba. They heard talks from the Book of Daniel and what it meant to be a bold believer.

Pray that the youth who went along would be challenged to live lives for God.

NewyPM FAMILY DINNER

On Sunday, NewyPM gathered for dinner after church. It was a great to spend some time together and share a meal.

Give thanks for all the people who provided food and for the opportunity to strengthen church relationships.

AM: Connect 17

AM:Connect17 was a great day at Swansea for the Newy:AM family to hang out on the last Saturday of March. Young and old had fun playing cricket, paddling canoes, drinking tea/coffee, riding bikes & billy carts, sliding down hills on ice-sleds, drinking tea/coffee, playing tennis, etc.

It enabled conversations and relationships to be deepened, the sort of thing that comes just through time and shared experiences.

Pray for connections to strengthen between our Newy:AM family members, to laugh together through the fun times so we can cry and pray together through the tough times.

Pubsessions

On the 6th, PubSessions returned for 2017. PubSessions is a two hour weekly gathering where HBCers are able to participate in ministry training and hear a 'PubTalk,' where we address a current big issue in our world and how the gospel speaks into it.

Living our lives shaped by the Gospel gives us competence, confidence and conviction to serve Jesus in a world that is hostile to Jesus. Pray that through PubSessions HBCers would be equipped for a lifetime of making disciples and serving Jesus.

CREATE 17

Our musicians from across all four congreagations gathered for a day of song-writing on the 25th, with Trevor Hodge. We were encouraged to write songs that glorified our great God.

Thank God for providing our church with talented people to help us praise Him every week and the time to gather for a song-writing day.

Live at the GT Bar

On the 8th, musicians from HBC put on a free music gig at the GT Bar on-campus. Live at the GT bar was a chance for our friends who don’t know Jesus to rub shoulders with people from church.

Our hope is that it’ll help merge the worlds' of non-Christians with Christians and that in doing so will provide opportunities for us to share the gospel and our lives with them, that they might be saved.

Pray that we’d keep having opportunities to tell those who came along about Jesus.

Big Ideas Night: Scripture

60 people from all 4 congregations met to learn about the doctrine of Scripture at the first Big Ideas Night on the 15th.

Scripture is God's word to us - authorative, inspired, sufficient, infallible and clear - so it's right that we thought hard about our convictions here!

Pray that we might value Scripture as a church and be reading it regularly personally, in families and in all aspects of church.

DumplinGS with the girls

Last Wednesday, the women of UniChurch gathered with their friends for a night of homemade dumplings and had good quality time together.

The night provided a way for Unichurch girls to invite a non-Christian friend along, and by God's grace there were 12 non-Christian girls who came along!

Please be praying for them to be having gospel conversations in the following weeks with their Christian friends.

Building Acquisition Committee

March kicked off with the Building Acquisition Committee meeting to discuss HBC's plans to buy a building in the future.

Please thank God for the spaces HBC has been able to meet in over the years and ask God to provide the funds and the facilities for a purpose built HBC home.

There'll be more info about our prayers and plans at the HBC AGM on the 12th.

what's coming up...

HBC Annual General Meeting - 12th April at the Hub

At our Association AGM we go through some formal requirements for our legal association, but we also get the chance to thank God for the year that's been.

This year we'll also be going through some more info about our plans for a HBC Building.

Good Friday: 10am 14th April at Lambton High School

We'd love to invite you to come and celebrate Easter with us as we dig into what Jesus means when he says, "It is finished."

LIFE SERIES

18 people (5 international students) have come along to check out the claims of Jesus at the Life Series during February!

Praise God for his compassion in bringing them along. Ask that he would have mercy on their souls and that we might continue to do a good job of sharing the good news with them.

LAUNCH 17

On the 18th, our Unichurch congregation gathered for Launch17. Here, Unichurch had the opportunity to refocus and prepare for the new students arriving and a year of proclaiming Jesus’ name in Newcastle.

Pray that Unichurch would make a real commitment to see their primary focus for this year ito fulfil the purposes of God in this world for God's glory alone.

Pray that Unichurches will continue to do a good job at welcoming and loving people into church.

Pray that God would be pleased to use Unichurch to bring many to himself.

PM FAMILY BBQ

Last Sunday our church family stuck around after church to share a meal and chat together.

It was a great time for regulars and new/ish people who've recently joined us this year to spend time together.

Pray that we would continue to spend time with one another in our day to day lives as well as thanking God for the good and hard times we share together.

Unichurch & O-WEEK

O-week kicked off last week at the University, with hundreds of new students filling the campus for orientation.

It's also a week where Unichurch gets to meet these new people through a load of activities such as leafleting, walk up and door knocking. We also ran a girls high tea, a beach hangout, park soccer and a BBQ dinner before church.

Pray for all the people that came into contact with Unichurch, and that we would love them into our family and help them connect with HBC.

Growth groups kicked off

Growth Groups have now started across all congregations including, for the first very time, Lake Mac!

Being part of a Bible study group is a great way for us to be growing together to become more like Christ and to love our brothers and sisters.

Pray for all our Growth Groups and wonderful leaders, including your own.

Chinese New Year

All Nations and Reality hosted Chinese New Year on the 11th, where they cooked dumplings, ate delicious food, played games and conversed with one another, before kicking off Unichurch in 2017.

The night was a great way for our International and Australian students to meet and build relationships, as well as providing an opportunity for non-Christians to meet Christians.

Thank God for bringing together people from every tribe and nation into his family through Jesus and pray that the non-Christians who came along might be saved.

ELDers and Association News (AGM Notice)

Notice of HBC Association Annual General Meeting. 12 April 2017 at the HBC HUB.

Please try to come along to the AGM of the HBC Association. There's always some formal things to get through, but we'll also be talking about the plans and prayers for a HBC Building.

The other news is that the wonderful Bronwyn Thomas has decided to take a well-earned break from being an Adviser to the Committee of Elders. Bronwyn has been part of the Committee since May 2013 and has served our church with faithfulness and wisdom. Please join us in thanking God for Bronwyn.

WAVE Kids Club

In the third week of January, the WAVE Kids Club with Sideline Cafe kicked off. Over 600 kids came along throughout the week, with over 100 different adults sticking around at the coffee tent. All who came along got to hear and learn about how they could be friends with Jesus and what the gospel means.

Thank God for the 200+ people who helped WAVE happen and pray for all those who heard the gospel.

Men & Meat Night

On the 25th, a stack men gathered at The Hub to hang out with friends, cut up and eat lamb and hear about Jesus.

Pray for the non-Christians who were invited along, and that they would continue to investigate who Jesus is.

Summer Nights

Over Summer, Newy:PM has been meeting on Tuesday at Summer Nights to hang out, let the kids play, eat together and listen to a story from the Bible, because it's easy to let God slip to the side when Growth Groups have come to an end.

Pray that Newy:Pmers would practice and remember these Bible stories so they can lovingly share the Gospel, as well as think through what it means for their own lives.

Summer Sessions

Last Tuesday, Summer Sessions kicked off again for our Unichurch congregation. Summer Sessions is a great chance for Unichurch to continue to meet and study the Bible whilst on holidays. It will run every Tuesday until the 14th of Feb, at The Hub from 6pm-9pm.

Pray that the Unichurchers would be challenged and equipped for another year of serving Jesus at uni.

Big Questions

Over the Summer, all four congregations have been looking at four big questions about Christianity. These have been a big hit with non-Cristians thinking through the claims of Christianity as well as for Christians to consider how to answer wisely on their own.

We're planning to put these up online soon!

Growth Groups Kicking off

Over the past week or so, 100s of HBCers have been signing up for Growth Groups for the year. As a church, we're really keen on gathering around the bible in weekly groups to grow more like Christ together.

Please pray for our 70+ Growth Group leaders and their support teams. Please pray for our Newish Groups starting the Connect Series too! The hope is that those Newish Groups will become their own Growth Groups soon.

Our Extended family

At HBC we partner with a bunch of people and organisations who we love, and are doing some ministry + evangelism that we can't do, but are really excited about. To keep things manageable, and to help deepen relationships between people in our church family here in Newcastle + Lake Mac and our family serving in other places, we divide them up amongst our 4 congregations.

Christmas Carols in Lambton park

On the 18th of December, HBC hosted Christmas Carols in Lambton Park. It was an amazing time spent with family and friends whilst joining in singing carols. We estimate there were about 7000 people there at least!

Thank God for all the hard work of those involved in making carols happen and everyone who attended. Pray that locals would consider coming to WAVE and Church this January.

Christmas with hbc

Over Christmas we had our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day church services where we celebrated the birth of our Saviour.

For the very first time, HBC had two Christmas Eve services which ran at Lambton and Eleebana. Our Lake Mac service had over 130 people!

Praise God for the 578 adults and children who joined in our Christmas services and pray that they would come to celebrate Christ too.

Youth Camp

Youth took away it's biggest group of kids to their final camp for the year. It was a great time where they went camping in tents (and sometimes without) and heard solid bible teaching.

Thank God for all the Youth leaders who have served this year, and pray that our Youth kids would continue to be keen for knowing our God more.

RUSH FINIshed for the year

On the 9th December, our primary-aged kids program ended for the year. The Rush Team ran an excellent last day of activities at Lambton Park. Thank God for the work of our Rush Leaders in sharing Jesus with these kids.

If you're keen for your kids to continue learning about Jesus during the holidays, register them for WAVE Kids Club at www.wavekids.com.au .

PM Mexican Night

On the 11th of December, PMers had a Mexican Night following the service. It was a great night where we got to enjoy an awesome meal together.

Thank God for the helpers and the awesome opportunity to hang out together as a congregation. Pray that new people and regulars would keep feeling welcome!

MTS leavers

The end of the year means that a number of our MTS Apprentices have finished their apprenticeships. For many of them, they will be heading off to Bible college, new jobs and new places.

Please give thanks for our MTS Apprentices, for their hard work and pray about the challenges that lie ahead.

How we ended the Calendar Year

Oct-Dec were better months, but overall it looks like we've ended the year quite far behind budget. However, the graph doesn't capture a steady stream of giving to the Building Fund. So overall our everyday accessible cash has depleted, our building fund cash has increased.

Could you kick-off the 2017 year with a one-off donation to church to help recover the buffer?

Gospel Investment Night

On the 15th we gathered as a church to prayerfully consider the investment plans for 2017 and beyond.

In the first part of the evening we discussed the plans for 2017 including using direct debits. Greg then announced HBC's plans to buy a building in the next 3 -5 years.

Pray that HBC would continue to invest wisely in future gospel proclamation.

To see the handouts and listen to the recordings from GI Night click here

Advent Calendars

Over two weeks in November, a team of people created advent calendars to raise funds for Compassion.

HBC was able to raise $500 through the generosity of HBC families.

If you would like to download the bible verses to read on the lead up to Christmas go here

Reality Farewell

Our Growth Groups for students living on-campus - a.k.a. "Reality" - have wrapped up for the year! Students moving off campus were farewelled and reminded of the unity we have in Christ. Pray that both leavers and returners would continue to grow in Christ over the summer break.

AllNations Farewell

At the AllNations Farewell, we sent some of our brothers and sisters off to Singapore, Hong Kong, Mexico, South Korea and.. Tamworth and Sydney. We opened the Bible to see God's heart for the nations and prayed for Bec Castelijn in Bangladesh and skyped AllNations alumnus, Ted in the Philippines. Pray that international students will head overseas as missionaries for Jesus and will find solid churches where they can continue to grow.

Summer Sessions

Summer Sessions kicked off on Tuesday for the Unichurch congregation whose regular growth groups have finished for the year.

Over the next three Tuesdays, they'll be meeting at The Hub from 6pm for dinner and a bible study.

Baptisms

On the 20th and 27th, we had baptisms at the Unichurch, AM and PM congregations. ... people were baptised to show their inward acceptance of Christ.

Praise God for the way he's been at work in and through our church over the past 12 months and more.

SRE Christmas Shows

Scripture Christmas assemblies kicked off in the last week of November around a whole bunch of schools in Newcastle. It is an awesome opportunity for our scripture team to share the great news of Jesus and what Christmas really means.

Pray that all the children, staff and parents who are at these assemblies would come to know Jesus.

Lil'Buds Graduates

Last week saw a bunch of our little HBC members graduate from Lil'Buds because they're going to big-school in 2017.

Please thank God for these little brothers and sisters in Christ, and for the great helpers and Lil'Buds leaders over the past year! Women's Growth Group really wouldn't be the same without this team.

On November 15 we gathered at the Hub to prayerfully consider our financial investment plans -- as a church -- for 2017 and beyond.

There were two parts of the night. First we looked at the plan for 2017, and moving to using the direct debit giving method, including questions. Second, Greg unveiled plans for HBC to buy a building - a plan that starts now, but will really take the next few years.

If you missed out on the night, we'd love you to listen to the recording and check out the handouts we gave out.

Carols Rehearsals

The Carols music team began rehearsals in October, for Christmas Carols in Lambton Park in December.

Carols is looking to be awesome this year, but as always, we rely 100% on God's help and grace. Please pray for great weather, 7000 people and for Jesus to be at work, moving people to want to know more about him!

LAKE MAC LIFE SERIES

The Lake Mac Life Series kicked off on the 11th of October at Warners at the Bay. Pray for the 6 Non-Christians who have come along, and those who are being followed up by our Lake Mac team.

Gunnedah Mini Mission

On the 14th of October a team of 11 HBCers headed to Gunnedah for a weekend-long mission. The team shared the gospel with over 200 non-Christian students in the local high school, visited the homes of the elderly to encourage them in their walk with Jesus, did walk-up/door-knocking, ran their youth group and Sunday services.

Another mini-mission is coming up out to Quirindi at the end of November! Let us know if you're keen to come help.

WAVE Training Day #2

On the 29th of October, the WAVE Team had their second training day. Please pray for the Kids, Welcoming, Rego, Cafe, Logistics and Catering teams as they prepare for the WAVE Mission Week.

If you would like to join a Kids Team, express your interest here.

If you would like to serve on one of the other teams email waveteamrego@hunterbiblechurch.org

AM Family Lunch

Newy:Am had a lunch get-together the other week. This was especially great to hang out with all the Sprout Kids helpers. Newy:PM recently had an after church dinner too.

Please keep praying that God would help us all be a loving and connected fellowship, while always looking outwards to see more people saved.

FINANCE UPDATE

October was a much better month, and we've clawed back a bit of our deficit. We're still about $40k behind our 'year-to-date' target.

Some of the things our giving went towards in October were:

$3,200 to our Missionaries $1,000 to cover some MTS Training Courses $1,100 for some repairs, equipment, resources and cleaning $12,000 to cover rent for the Hub, Lambton High, Eleebana and the Uni

Thank God for one another's generosity. Every dollar we give goes towards helping our church deepen our faith and reach more of the lost.

HBC: LAKE MAC CONGREGATION LAUNCH

The new HBC congregation launched on the 21st of August! 90 people attended the launch, with 20 visitors.

Keep praying that Lake Mac would grow and the plant team would continue to be bold in inviting others along.

YOUTH BREAKAWAY

On the 12th - 14th of August, Youth had their weekend away. Over the weekend Matt Sheridan gave a series of talks on Philippians. Youth were challenged to live their lives for Christ as he is returning and lord of all.

PM16 Weekend Away

On the 19th of August, our PM congregation headed to Toukley for their weekend away. Despite sickness (and the speaker not being able to make it!!), it was a great opportunity to look at what God thinks about identity, gender and sexuality.

UNICHURCH PUB SESSIONS

Unichurch Pub Sessions kicked off on the 1st of August, at the Godfrey Tanner Bar on campus.

This semester our Unichurch congregation has heard a series of talks on issues related to how the world sees Christianity.

WAVE TRAINING DAY #1

On the 27th of August the WAVE Team had their first training day. The Team had the opportunity to gather, meet their team members and begin preparations for WAVE in January.

Pray for the team as they continue to prepare for WAVE, and for wise leadership from Section Leaders.

BIG IDEAS NIGHT: PREDESTINATION

On the 31st of August, we had our fifth Big Ideas Night. Richard explored predestination and what it means for our lives.

GRAD DINNER #1 & #2

Graduating is a time that requires us to make decisions that will affect the rest of our lives. On the 31st of August, recent and soon-to-be graduates from Unichurch had dinner together where Greg explored the topic of money. They were challenged to make wise decisions about their future and how money should shape their lives as Christians in the workforce.

FIEC Conference

From the 5th- 8th of September our senior staff headed to the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches' Conference. It was a great opportunity to spend time with other ministry workers and be encouraged to keep persevering from 1Peter in a hostile world.

MTS Mission Minded

On the 30th of September, staff, MTSers and HBC members headed to the MTS Mission Minded Conference at Katoomba. They spent the long weekend hearing what the bible says about full-time ministry and considering if that might be a path for them.

Please thank God for all those who came and thought through these massive ideas.

Pastoral Staff Spotlight - Scott Curtis

Scott is married to Merrin and finished his MTS Apprenticeship in 2015. Scott Joined the HBC Pastoral Staff this year part-time, while doing distance theological training.

Scott has been coordinating the Lake Mac congregation plant and looks after the Ministry "M" across HBC... helping us to love serving Jesus together.

UNICHURCH MID-YEAR CONFERENCE

AM BLAST

A bunch of Newy:AM families spent a rainy afternoon together at the hub... good fun hanging out together with snags, froyo, and a bit of nerf mayhem.

LIFE term 3 kicks off

Please pray as our term 3 Life Series kicks off again. There's already over 20 people interested in coming along to the various events.

You can still invite your mates... Thursday night 7:30pm at the Hub. Let us know if you do!

LIVE at the HUB

Live at the Hub was an idea that a couple of HBCers dreamed up and turned into something awesome. Live music and chilled vibes on a Saturday arvo for you and your unchurched friends!

Thank God for the opportunity and pray that we'll get to try it again.

Dave "DJ" Robertson - PASTORAL STAFF SPOTLIGHT

Dave (DJ) is married to Katie and has been part of the HBC pastoral staff since finishing MTS in 2013.

Dave covers lots of areas at HBC... He works with Sam Hilton, helping the Unichurchers become missionaries to those around them. He helps out with Growth Group leaders at PM and also helps co-ordinate all our pastoral purposes at Unichurch and for the uni.

Please thank God for Dave and Katie, and pray that God would keep growing them and using them to bring Jesus glory in Newcastle through HBC.

Finance Update

Please thank God for the spiritual gift of generosity.

Over the last 2 months, we've seen an upturn in giving to meet monthly budget. However, after the first months of giving being behind budget, there's $44k of expenses that we need to make up before the end of the year.

If you're a regular at HBC, Galatians 6 says it's good for you to share the financial costs of running the church and reaching the lost. Please prayerfully consider setting up a regular transfer to HBC today (account details here).

NEW MEMBERS' DINNER

Early in June we had a night with a load of new faces at HBC. It was a dinner together to welcome the many people who've started coming in 2015/16 and have joined our church family.

Thank God for bringing many new people to HBC!

BIG IDEAS NIGHT FOR WOMEN: THE GOSPEL & ONLINE PURITY

About 100 women of HBC gathered on the 22nd June to think through and discuss online purity together. It was a great chance to rethink some of our world's assumptions and consider how to be godly women now and in the future.

AM16 Weekend Away

During the wettest weekend in June (yes, that one) the Newcastle:AM congregation went away for the weekend together. Amid the soaking rain they hung out lots and had Dan Godden walk us through John and think about what really matters. (Listen to the talks online here).

COMPASSION SUNDAY

On the 26th of June, HBC had Compassion Sunday where we heard about the great work of Compassion as they bring the gospel and physical aid to kids all across the globe.

There were over 20 kids who were lovingly sponsored on the day. If you'd like to sponsor a child from our link-church program please contact sam@hunterbiblechurch.org

WINTER WARMERS

Winter Warmers kicked off on the 21st of June at The Hub. Winter Warmers provides an opportunity for regular Unichurch Growth Groups, LIFE and AllNations to continue to meet during the university break.

They're all heading off to Unichurch MYC in a few days! Please pray that our Unichurch congregation would grow in love and knowledge of Jesus this semester!

HBC:LAKEmac LAUNCHing soon

It's only 40 days until the LakeMac congregation kicks off! There's about 55 launch-team members and it's starting to feel very close.

Please join us in praying for the LakeMac Congregation and for the people in the LakeMac area...

EQUIP WOMEN - STREAMED LIVE AT THE HUB

On May 28th, nearly 100 women from HBC watched the live feed of Equip Women 2016. The topic was "Freed" from 1Corinthians.

Thank God for the opportunity to gather together and for the great teaching from women for women.

HBC:LAKE MAC UPDATE

Some exciting news as we're only a few months from launching our new Lake Mac Congregation. We've locked in the location; Eleebana Public School, and the time; 4:30pm on Sundays.

FINANCE UPDATE

While we're not in the financially tricky situation we were in last year, we want to keep you updated. We've seen a slow but steady drop in giving over the past few months. This looks to be attributed to a significant percentage of HBC regulars who haven't started giving regularly or have stopped regular giving.

MAG TEAM TRAINING arvo

On the 22nd, the Mag Team had team training at Lambton High School.

"Last Mag Team Training was all about Crafting Great Sundays with the focus on developing skills. We ate together, wrestled with Jesus and the early church in Acts 2 and learnt loads from a bunch of experienced musos and techies from within our church. Next MTT, Jon Baldwin the Magnification Pastor from EV church on the coast is investing in us. Pumped!" - Pete M

A GREAT DAY OF MISSION TRAINING

May's Mission Training day was a great encouragement as all three congregations came together to learn how to better engage non-Christian friends with the Gospel. Seminars were really helpful in unpacking how to intentionally build relationships, and help people thinking about Jesus in a non confrontational way.

Get excited for the next Mission Training day with Sam Chan August 8. He'll show us how to be involved in the lives of those around us, so that we can share Jesus with them!

NEW BATHROOM AT THE HUB

The extra toilet has been completed at the Hub! Yay. So, if you're there with your kids, or the other toilets are in use, please feel free to use the all access toilet.

Also, as we're all using things at the hub, don't leave things for other people. If you see something around the hub that needs doing, please go ahead and help out by getting it done.

REALITY WEEKEND AWAY

On May 13, our College Growth Group, Reality, headed to Tahlee for their weekend away.

"We had a great time, 50 people came along including some wonderful alumni who served us by feeding us. We worked through the book of Philippians and we're reminded the the Day of Christ is approaching, to stand firm and preach Christ until that day arrives." - Shero #IHFTW

Reading Group

It can be fun and challenging to read theology together.

Our pastor for Maturity, Richard Sweatman, will be reading a recent Systematic Theology book over the next year or so and is keen to meet and discuss it once a month or so with anyone interested. It's called 'The Christian Faith: A systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the way' by Michael Horton. Email richard@hunterbiblechurch.org if you'd like to know more.

pastoral team Spotlight - Pete Munday

As our staff team grows, it can be hard to know who's on the pastoral team and what they do - so we'll do a spot-light every month.

Pete Munday is married to Rach and is one of our Magnification Pastors. Pete finished his MTS Apprenticeship in 2014 and joined the pastoral team part time. Pete's responsible for helping us as a church to love God in song. He recruits, trains and guides our musicians, our music selection, our song leaders, sound techs and projector screen drivers. Even though Pete mightn't be up the front leading music every Sunday, he's behind the scenes every week, encouraging, growing and developing our many teams who help us praise Jesus' glory. He's always looking for people to join this worthy task - so email pmunday@hunterbiblechurch.org if you're at all interested.

Committee of Elders Update

We reckon it's really valuable for different pastoral staff to have a spell on the Committee of Elders. So after 10 years of faithful service as a Committee member, Sam Hilton is stepping off the Elders Committee for a time. That will give him a bit more time to focus on Mission - especially with the Lake Mac congregation starting up. Taking his place, Pete Witt is jumping onto the Committee for the time being.

Please thank God for Sam's role on the Committee over the past 10 years! Please pray for Pete and the whole Committee - that they would do a great job of protecting the values of our church for Jesus sake.